Prawn Toast Milk Buns: elevated brunches at Lilac Eatery
So, it was au revoir recently to the longstanding Saint Espresso – and hello to this latest opening on Kentish Town Road.
Lilac originates from Nottingham, but it appears to pop up all over the place. Sure, it promises to be another high quality brunch spot – but a peek at their menu reveals some refreshingly imaginative options.
Our eyes are firmly on items like the fried prawn toast milk bun with sesame herb salad, sweet chilli and a honey glaze; and, better still, a hoisin duck croissant (yep, that’s a croissant stuffed with pulled roasted duck, hoisin sauce, spring onion and cucumber pickle).
What else? There are Korean sweetcorn pancakes, gochujang eggs on toasted milk bread and an awesome-sounding crispy potato hash made in-house, topped with two poached eggs, smoked salmon, miso yuzu Hollandaise, chives and parmesan. Phew. Carnivores can also replace the salmon with bavette. And if you’re more of an eggs on toast person, well, there’s that too. Work up an appetite on the Heath first. Follow @lilac_kentishtown
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Alby’s Pizza pops up in Gospel Oak
Known for New York-style pizza, Alby’s started up in indie London taproom Mother Kelly down in Vauxhall’s railway arches back in 2022 (where we have been known to frequent before the RVT, on occasion).
Characterised by their 22” pizzas (yep, they’re huge) and sold by the slice or the whole pie, Alby’s are, they explain, “all about simplicity, utilising the best quality ingredients, exciting specials and a unique dough that you won’t find anywhere else.”
This new pop-up at the Gipsy Queen follows a residency at Finsbury Park bar Someday, and is the latest development at the Gospel Oak pub, which was recently taken over by new management. Follow @albys.pizza
Margot Bakery
Finally, if you’ve wandered up to Highgate recently – not the cute village bit, but the thoroughfare alongside surely London’s leafiest tube station – you might have glimpsed new artisan bakery Margot.
Sister to branches in Holloway and nearby East Finchley, expect all the usual suspects from freshly baked sourdough to the perfect croissant. They opened “quietly” on Halloween (373 Archway Road) and are just finding their feet, they say. Follow @margot.bakery
Kentishtowner turns 15 soon – which isn’t too shabby for an independent food & culture site run on almost zero resources. And, as usual, a billion thanks to those who donate. But to put it into perspective, that’s just under 5% of readers in the last year. If you’re sitting on the fence a bit, maybe just ping over a couple of quid? After all, that’s cheaper than a coffee almost anywhere these days. Support Kentishtowner here
